A Life Worth Living
by noob7
Summary: [Gift-fic for Crizix] His life was empty, his existence meaningless. He would have ended it all at once ...if she hadn't intervened when she did. Post FE12. Hints of Wolf/female Chris. Contains a brief mention of self-harming.


**A/N: For sanity's sake, I'm using "Chris" instead of "Kris". Now that that has been addressed, onward with the story!**

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When he first described the beauty of his homeland to her, she knew right then that it would be a spectacular place to visit. However when she actually got to see these lands for herself, she realized words alone just could not describe how vast and magnificent the plains of Aurelis appeared. The emerald green grass tickled her shins as they swayed in the breeze. The cerulean sky was crystal clear and dotted with small, puffy, white clouds. A cool wind rose up in the plains, and scattered colorful flower petals everywhere, sending the scents of fresh grass and wild clovers through the air. Chris basked in this glorious paradise, trying to take in all the sights and smells of nature.

"It's beautiful, Wolf." She said with a bit of a dreamy sigh. "I feel as if all the burdens of war have disappeared and I am finally at peace. This is truly nirvana."

Wolf nodded and stepped up closer to his friend. It was strange; when they first met, he thought this girl would just be a waste of his time and wouldn't bother to get to know her. But now she was one of his closest friends…maybe even closer than Roshea, Vyland, or Sedgar.

"Do you like it?" He asked.

"I _love_ it!" Chris exclaimed. "Don't get me wrong; I enjoy living in Altea, but I'm actually a little jealous of you. This is a wonderful home."

"Yes…it is."

Chris paused when she heard the dull tone to Wolf's voice and tore her eyes away from the scenery to look back at him. Even before they officially met, Chris knew that Wolf was never a man of emotions; the only facial expression she ever saw him make was a small smile when he asked her to come to Aurelis with him. Right now, he still had on his stoic façade, but she could see with the way his head was slightly bent, his shoulders slumped, and the sadness in his eye that wasn't covered by his hair, he was clearly upset about something. She knew him long enough to figure that part out about him. Without hesitation, Chris walked up to him and gripped his shoulder gently.

"What's wrong, Wolf?" She asked, soft concern in her voice. "You can tell me."

"Nothing for you to worry about." He replied, albeit very quietly.

Chris looked at him incredulously, but still showed her desire to listen to whatever was bothering him and offer her comfort. She removed her hand from his shoulder, and instead reached out to hold his wrists. As she did this, she noticed that Wolf had slightly tensed up and released a pained hiss under his breath. Curious, Chris looked down at his wrists and pulled back the sleeves. What she saw was horrifying: cuts, some fresh and some old, radiated in all directions down his forearm. They crisscrossed each other and ran in jagged lines on every inch of his pale skin. In short, they looked painful and the only one responsible for causing these sorts of injuries would have to be the victim himself.

"Wolf, why?" Chris gasped, her voice quavering. "Why…why did you do this to yourself?"

Wolf yanked his arms away and pulled his sleeves down to cover the proof of his self-mutilation. "…I don't have a reason to live anymore…"

"I told you that if you were ever depressed about something, you could always come to me!" She shouted, angrier now. "I'd be there to listen, to comfort…I'd be able to help!"

"You don't understand," Wolf muttered. "A few honeyed words and a friendly touch isn't going to take away this pain. Nothing is going to undo the damage that has been done. Nothing is going to bring Coyote back..."

"So that's what you're upset about? Lord Hardin?"

Wolf fell silent. He bent his head down, standing there with his arms crossed and remaining like that for a very long time. Chris waited and waited for him to say…or do something, but he didn't so much as look up at her. Finally she sighed and moved her hand back to his shoulder again.

"Wolf, I…I'm sorry. I didn't mean to yell as I did."

No reply. This was going to take some work…

"But you need to understand. The pain may be strong, but that just means you have to be stronger! You can't let these dark feelings get the better of you."

That didn't even elicit a response. She was just going to have to try harder now.

"Wolf, listen to me and listen well. I can understand your suffering, for I went through something similar. When my grandfather died, I was so alone that I just wanted to give up. I felt like I had nothing left to live for. But then I told myself this: my grandfather dedicated most of his time to help me build a life for myself. How would he feel to see me like this, giving into despair, and throwing away the opportunity we worked so hard for to obtain? The same question applies to you, Wolf. How would Hardin feel to see you so depressed that you would cast aside the life he gave you?"

Upon hearing this, Wolf finally raised his head and looked up at her, though he did not respond and still kept an emotionless expression. Chris gave him a small smile; they were making progress now.

"After we defeated Medeus, you said so yourself: you would keep on fighting until you've cleared Hardin's name. You have quite a bit of work to do to make that a reality, so death is not an option for you. Please, Wolf…the world isn't finished with you yet. You need to keep on living…for Hardin, for your brothers…for me…"

A small tint of pink appeared on Chris's cheeks and nose as she said that last part, which for some reason sounded a lot better in her head. Knowing the kind of person Wolf was, she knew that having any feelings for the man would either go unnoticed or bluntly rejected by him. However this time, he indeed took notice of her feelings, but he was instead more focused on the impact of what she just said to him. Finally, he closed his eyes and let out a long sigh.

"Yes you're…you're right, Chris." He muttered. "I still have to keep going…my work is far from finished and I can't just end it now."

Relief washed over Chris, as she exhaled deeply and patted Wolf soothingly on his shoulder. She could feel him tense up a bit as she did so; he probably wasn't used to this kind of physical contact…much less from someone of the opposite sex.

"I'm glad you've made that resolve." Chris said. "And just so you know, I'll be there to help you achieve your goal. Just…promise me that you will keep on living after you've made that accomplishment."

Wolf nodded as he reached up and placed his hand over hers…though he didn't know _exactly_ why he did so. It was like his body was moving on its own…

"I promise." He replied. "And…thanks, Chris."

"You don't have to thank me; you'd do the same for me." Chris flashed him a toothy grin. "Hey, you still have to show me the rest of Aurelis. Surely there are other breath taking sights that your home has to offer?"

Wolf glanced over at her to meet her gaze…then gave her a small, but genuine smile.

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**A/N:** **I never knew Wolf could be so hard to write...especially since he didn't have much of a personality in the first place. But in FE12, his emotionless behavior breaks into a personality I really cannot describe. Basically, he goes from quiet, to hot-headed, to depressed...to romantically interested if Chris is female. It didn't really come out the way I wanted to, so I apologize if it isn't that good. Well, hope you had a special day, Crizix and sorry this is late!**


End file.
